African wild dogs are one of world’s most endangered large carnivores, with only around 6,000 individuals left in the wild. Now, new research has revealed that they face a growing threat from declining prey populations due to bushmeat poaching.
A study conducted throughout Zambia found that in prey-scarce areas, wild dogs travel further, burn more energy and reproduce less.
The researchers, who published their findings in Proceedings of the National Academy Sciences, warn that restoring prey populations is crucial to the species' survival.
African wild dogs: a shifting balance
For three million years, the African wild dog has survived by skilfully hunting prey while avoiding larger predators such as lions, as well as more dominant competitors, such as spotted hyenas. As a result, wild dog populations tend to remain low in areas where lions and hyenas are abundant, even when prey is plentiful.
However, new research led by the Zambian Carnivore Programme, Montana State University, Swansea University, and the Zambia Department of National Parks and Wildlife suggests that this balance is shifting. Across Africa, bushmeat poaching is driving a dramatic decline in large herbivore populations, altering the challenges that wild dogs face.
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Tracking packs
In Zambia’s Greater Kafue Ecosystem – the largest protected area in Zambia and the second largest national park in Africa – decades of intensive poaching have drastically reduced populations of key prey species such as impala and puku. Although conservation efforts are now working to reverse this trend, prey numbers remain low.
Meanwhile, in South Luangwa National Park (eastern Zambia), where poaching is less prevalent, prey populations are still abundant.
Researchers found that even though wild dogs in Kafue face fewer lions and hyenas, their survival rates are lower and they produce fewer offspring than dogs in Luangwa.
To understand why, scientists used high-frequency accelerometers attached to radio collars to track wild dog movements. These lightweight devices recorded the animals’ acceleration 40 times per second, allowing researchers to measure their speed, distance travelled and hunting success.
The study examined 16 packs across two ecosystems, comparing those in prey-rich territories to those in prey-depleted areas.
The findings were striking – where prey was scarce, wild dogs had to travel significantly further each day, burning more energy but catching smaller meals. This shift in the 'landscape of energy’ helps explain why depleted prey populations lead to lower survival and reproduction rates in wild dogs.
What now?
These results have clear implications for conservation, say the researchers. Protecting wild dogs will require restoring prey populations, which means tackling illegal bushmeat poaching.
However, this is no simple task, as bushmeat provides both food and income for many communities. Effective conservation will require a combination of law enforcement and alternative livelihood programmes to reduce reliance on poaching, the researchers add.
Despite these challenges, the study highlights a rare opportunity for a 'win-win-win’ scenario. By enhancing protection in ecosystems like Kafue, conservationists can boost populations of not only wild dogs but also their prey and even their competitors, the lions and hyenas.
Find out more about the study: Prey depletion, interspecific competition and the energetics of hunting in endangered African wild dogs, Lycaon pictus. Creel et al., 2025
Main image: wild dog in Kafue/Anna Kusler, ZCP
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